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Sekirei (セキレイ, lit. Wagtail) is a Japanese manga series by Sakurako Gokurakuin. The manga was serialized in Square Enix's seinen magazine Young Gangan between December 2004 and August 2015. A sequel to the manga began serialization in the same magazine in May 2017. An anime adaptation produced by Seven Arcs and directed by Keizō Kusakawa aired in Japan between July and September 2008, and a second season aired between July and September 2010. Both seasons were licensed in North America by Funimation, until their license expired in 2017. The central character of the series is Minato Sahashi, a ronin who failed college examinations twice. His life changes, however, when he meets several girls with special powers called 'Sekirei', and is dragged into a battle to decide the fate of the world.

• 2Terminology
• 3Media

Plot[edit]

In Tokyo known as Shinto Teito (新東帝都Shintō Teito, 'New Eastern Imperial Capital') in 2020, 19-year-old Minato Sahashi is extremely intelligent, yet due to his inability to cope under pressure, has failed the college entrance exam twice.

One day, Minato meets a girl named Musubi, who literally falls from the sky. Minato soon learns that she is a 'Sekirei' and chooses him as her 'Ashikabi', one of the mysterious set of humans that have the genetic trait and can make a contract by kissing the Sekirei. This binds the Sekirei to him and allows them to use their full power in elimination battles with other Sekirei. Made up of 108 cute girls, attractive buxom women, and bishōnen, the Sekirei fight in a competition known as the 'Sekirei Plan' organized by Hiroto Minaka, the chairman and founder of the mysterious and powerful MBI Corporation.

Minato quickly learns that being the partner of a Sekirei is not all fun and games, especially when several other Sekirei choose him as their Ashikabi, each also forming a contract with him. Now, Minato must find a way to survive both the life-threatening battles of the Sekirei Plan and his partners' fierce competition for him.

Terminology[edit]

Sekirei[edit]

Sekirei (鶺鴒lit. Wagtail) are superpowered beings with a different genetic code similar to a human's. The Sekirei spaceship crashed on Earth in 1999 on Kamikura Island (神座島Kamikura-jima), and was found by two students, Hiroto Minaka (future MBI chairman) and Takami Sahashi (future MBI head researcher and Minato's mother). On board, the pair had found 108 life-forms, described as 'One pillar and 107 baby birds'.^[5][6]

• The first of them (a pillar, shown as #00,^[7] later renumbered and known as #01 Miya) was an adult.
• Eight (later known as #02–09) were embryos, also known as the 'Single Numbers'.
• 99 others (later known as #10–108) were fertilized eggs.

The adult and the eight embryos are also known as the 'Single Numbers'. It is hinted that unwinged Single Numbers are equal or even more powerful than their winged counterparts.^[8] All of the Sekirei had used adjustments for the Sekirei Plan, especially the Single Numbers. The adjustments had been used not only for making Sekirei stronger, but also for controlling and strengthening their power. Each Sekirei has a Norito (祝詞, lit. 'Incantations'), a unique ability that allows them to perform powerful attacks. In order to use the Norito, a Sekirei must be kissed by their Ashikabi^[9] prior to reciting it. Sekirei that are under the same Ashikabi can also merge their techniques in order to create more powerful techniques. This puts most Ashikabi at a disadvantage, as only a few Ashikabi possess more than one Sekirei.

Ashikabi[edit]

Ashikabi (葦牙) are humans with unique genes that enable them to empower the Sekirei destined to serve them. Through mucous contact (kissing) between a Sekirei and its Ashikabi, a Sekirei without wings can become a 'winged' Sekirei. Unlike Sekirei, who are mostly buxom women or handsome young men, Ashikabi can be quite innocuous as they can appear in any gender, age, and even status. In the series, the power of an Ashikabi can be determined not only by the number of Sekirei he or she has in his or her disposal, but by the bond between them. As the Sekirei fight escalates, five Ashikabi in particular, ascend as the favorites to win the Sekirei Fight, each having winged at least three Sekirei. One of them is Natsuo Ichinomi, the leader of the Disciplinary Squad, while each one of the four others control a different area in the city; Minato Sahashi from the North, Hayato Mikogami from the South, Izumi Higa from the East, and Nishi Sanada of the West. If an Ashikabi dies, all Sekirei winged by him or her will also perish.

Jinki[edit]

Jinki (神器, lit. 'God instrument'),^[10] are eight mysterious artifacts numbered from #1 to #8,^[11] also found on the Sekirei spaceship. If all eight of them are gathered, it is possible that they can be used to terminate all of the Sekirei if the wielder desires.^[12] Upon all Sekirei being winged, the MBI puts all Jinki in their possession as prizes for the matches of the Third Stage, and only the Ashikabi with a Jinki are allowed to keep participating in the Sekirei Fight by the end of the stage.

Sekirei Plan[edit]

The Sekirei Plan (鶺鴒計画Sekirei Keikaku), known to Minaka and others as the 'Game', is a competition in which the Sekirei and their Ashikabi must fight for survival until the last one of each remains. The true purpose of the plan is unknown, but it is implied to be sinister to some extent. The second anime season ended with the Second Stage completed, but before the Third Stage matches begin.

• First Stage: The Sekirei are adjusted and released in Tokyo. Thereafter, they must find Ashikabi for winging. This stage ends when 90% of the Sekirei are winged.
• Second Stage: Tokyo becomes a closed city and no Sekirei or Ashikabi can leave. The Ashikabi must then wing the remaining unwinged Sekirei, and every Ashikabi and their Sekirei must defeat at least one Sekirei.
• Third Stage: A series of battle royales between Ashikabi for possession of the Jinki. Only the Ashikabi who secure at least one of the Jinki until the end of this stage are eligible to advance.
• Final stage: The remaining Ashikabi are brought with their Sekirei to Kamikura Island and must fight among each other for the right to ascend to the Heavenly Palace and fight the pillar for the prize awaiting the ultimate winner of the Sekirei Fight.

Media[edit]

Manga[edit]

Sekirei is a manga series written and illustrated by Sakurako Gokurakuin. It was serialized in Square Enix's seinenmanga magazineYoung Gangan between December 3, 2004 and August 21, 2015.^[13][14] Square Enix published 18 tankōbon volumes between June 25, 2005 and October 24, 2015.^[15][16] A sequel to the manga titled Sekirei: Kanojo no Inai 365-nichi no Koto (セキレイ 彼女のいない365日のことSekirei: 365 Days Without Her) began serialization in Young Gangan on May 2, 2017.^[4]Yen Press licensed the original series in North America and began releasing the series with the first volume digitally in November 2015.^[17] They later began releasing the series in print in omnibus volumes combining two volumes into one in July 2017.^[18]

Drama CD[edit]

A drama CD entitled Sekirei Original Drama CD was released on July 25, 2007 by Frontier Works.^[19]

Anime[edit]

The first 12-episode anime series adaptation produced by the animation studio Seven Arcs and directed by Keizō Kusakawa aired in Japan between July 2 and September 17, 2008. The anime is licensed by Aniplex in Japan. The first season is mostly faithful to the overall story structure of the manga series, covering roughly the first fifty-one chapters of the series. The opening theme is 'Sekirei' (セキレイ) and the main ending theme is 'Dear sweet heart'; both songs are performed by Saori Hayami (#88 Musubi), Marina Inoue (#9 Tsukiumi), Kana Hanazawa (#108 Kusano) and Aya Endo (#2 Matsu). The ending theme used in episode eleven is 'Kimi o Omou Toki' (きみを想うとき, 'When I Think of You') by Hayami. Six DVDs of the first season were released between October 22, 2008^[20] and March 25, 2009.^[21] The sixth DVD volume was supplemented with an original video animation (OVA) episode, 'Kusano's First Shopping Trip' (初メテノオツカイHajimete no Otsukai, 'The First Errand'), featuring Kusano participating in the shopping race with Musubi and Tsukiumi. A Blu-ray box set of the first season was released on June 30, 2010 with three Blu-ray discs and one additional CD.^[22] At Anime USA 2009, Funimation announced that the anime's first season was licensed and a DVD box set was released on November 23, 2010.^[23][24]

A second season entitled Sekirei: Pure Engagement (セキレイ～Pure Engagement～) began airing on July 4, 2010^[25] on Tokyo MX and on July 6, 2010 on some other Japanese networks.^[26] The first episode of Sekirei: Pure Engagement was pre-aired on June 13, 2010. The opening theme is 'Hakuyoku no Seiyaku (Pure Engagement)' (白翼ノ誓約〜Pure Engagement〜) and the ending theme is 'Onnaji Kimochi' (おんなじきもち, 'Same Feeling'); both songs are performed by Hayami, Inoue, Hanazawa and Endo, as in the first season. The ending theme for episode 10 is 'Oboeteiru kara' (おぼえているから, 'Remembering You') by Hayami. A single containing both songs was released on July 21, 2010. The limited edition of the single came bundled with a special three-minute OVA, classified as episode 0, titled 'Two-Topic Gossip' (閑話弐題Kanwa Ni Dai). The full 28-minute version of the OVA was released with the first BD/DVD volume of the second season on August 25, 2010. As with the first season, Pure Engagement is licensed in North America by Funimation,^[27] and released the series on January 3, 2012. Funimation's licenses for both seasons will expire on February 9, 2017.^[28] Manga Entertainment released Pure Engagement in the United Kingdom on November 19, 2012.

Video game[edit]

A video game for PlayStation 2 entitled Sekirei: Gifts from the Future (セキレイ ～未来からのおくりもの～Sekirei ~Mirai kara no Okurimono~) was released on October 29, 2009 by Alchemist in limited and regular editions.^[29][30] Two music pieces implemented for the game's music consist of 'Yakusoku I'm with You' (約束 I'm with You, 'Promise I'm with You') and 'Survive Baby Survive!', both of them performed by Saori Hayami, Marina Inoue, Kana Hanazawa and Aya Endo.^[31] The limited edition version was bundled with figures of Musubi and Tsukiumi with Kusano in a panda suit, a 40-minute drama CD, and an illustration of Matsu.^[32] While Musubi, Tsukiumi, Matsu, Kusano, Miya, Homura, Uzume and Minato reprise their roles from the anime and manga,^[33] four new characters were created by Alchemist consisting of two Sekirei, one Ashikabi and a baby as video game-only characters.

The game takes place in the Sekirei timeline, being played as a visual novel. Minato and the Sekirei in Izumo Inn encounter new characters consisting of Sekirei No. 54, Kuruse (来瀬) (Haruka Tomatsu), Sekirei No. 57, Yahan (夜半) (Ayahi Takagaki), Ashikabi Reiji Koya (甲屋　玲治Koya Reiji) (Yuichi Nakamura) and a baby referred to as Aka-chan (赤ちゃん) (Haruka Tomatsu).^[34] It centers around the discovery of said baby, who is being pursued by unknown persons after Minato and the Sekirei found her abandoned in the city.^[35]

Reception[edit]

Volume eight of the Sekirei manga made the top 30 manga sold in Japan, holding third place with 103,811 copies sold from February 24 to March 2, 2009.^[36] Volume nine placed 17th out of 30 with 65,732 copies sold from December 21–27, 2009.^[37] From June 28 to July 4, 2010, volume ten sold 47,019 copies for a total amount of 120,991 in 20th out of 30.^[38]

References[edit]

1. ^'Sekirei, Vol. 1 - Yen Press'. Hachette Book Group. Archived from the original on December 14, 2015. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
2. ^Serdar Yegulalp. 'Sekirei: Pure Engagement'. About.com. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
3. ^'Sekirei'. Anime News Network. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
4. ^ ^ab'Sekirei Romantic Comedy Manga to Return on May 2'. Anime News Network. March 26, 2017. Retrieved March 26, 2017.
5. ^Sekirei manga; Chapter 69, page 5
6. ^Sekirei manga; Chapter 71, page 7 and 11
7. ^Sekirei manga; Chapter 69, page 4
8. ^Sekirei manga; Chapter 72, page 7
9. ^'Umashiashikabihikoji'. Kokugakuin University. Retrieved April 13, 2014.
10. ^Sekirei manga; Chapter 75, page 7
11. ^Sekirei manga; Chapters 78-80
12. ^Sekirei manga; Chapter 79, page 16
13. ^2004年12月3日創刊号発売 (in Japanese). Square Enix. Archived from the original on December 7, 2004. Retrieved July 25, 2014.
14. ^'Sakurako Gokurakuin Ends Sekirei Manga, Launches New Series'. Anime News Network. August 20, 2015. Retrieved August 20, 2015.
15. ^セキレイ 1 (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved June 9, 2014.
16. ^セキレイ18 (in Japanese). Amazon.co.jp. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
17. ^'Sekirei, Vol. 1'. Yen Press. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
18. ^'Sekirei, Vol. 1'. Hachette Book Group. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
19. ^'セキレイドラマCD' (in Japanese). Frontier Works. 2007. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
20. ^'DVD セキレイ 壱(完全生産限定版)' (in Japanese). Aniplex. Archived from the original on August 22, 2008. Retrieved November 26, 2008.
21. ^'DVD セキレイ 六(完全生産限定版)' (in Japanese). Aniplex. Archived from the original on December 18, 2008. Retrieved August 2, 2014.
22. ^'セキレイ Blu-ray BOX：セキレイ～Pure Engagement～' (in Japanese). Sekirei Anime Official Site. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
23. ^Stehmer, Eric (November 21, 2009). 'Funimation Announces Three New Titles'. Toon Zone. Retrieved November 21, 2009.
24. ^'Funimation Adds Sekirei, Testuwan Birdy Decode & Decode:02'. Anime News Network. November 22, 2009. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
25. ^'YGC『セキレイ』第10巻発売＆アニメ化記念フェア開催 !!' (in Japanese). Square Enix. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
26. ^'セキレイ～Pure Engagement～ 下記の放送局にて７月より放送開始予定です。' (in Japanese). Aniplex. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
27. ^'Funi Adds Trigun Film, Moyashimon, Shiki, Black Butler 2, Sekirei 2, More'. Anime News Network. July 2, 2010. Retrieved July 22, 2010.
28. ^'Funimation Announces 'Sekirei' Anime Rights Expiration'. Crunchyroll. January 22, 2017. Retrieved February 9, 2017.
29. ^'2009 年' (in Japanese). Alchemist. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
30. ^'PS2『セキレイ』声優サイン色紙プレゼントキャンペーン実施中！' (in Japanese). Animate.TV. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
31. ^'Music Page, Official Sekirei: Gifts from the Future Alchemist Page' (in Japanese). Alchemist. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
32. ^'Limited Edition Contents Page, Official Sekirei: Gifts from the Future Alchemist Website' (in Japanese). Alchemist. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
33. ^'Characters Page: 1-2, Official Sekirei: Gifts from the Future Alchemist Website' (in Japanese). Alchemist. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
34. ^'Characters Page: 2-2, Official Sekirei: Gifts from the Future Alchemist Website' (in Japanese). Alchemist. Retrieved 2010-08-25.
35. ^'Story Page, Official Sekirei: Gifts from the Future Alchemist Website' (in Japanese). Alchemist. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
36. ^'Japanese Comic Ranking, February 24-March 2'. Anime News Network. 2009-03-04. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
37. ^'Japanese Comic Ranking, December 21–27'. Anime News Network. 2009-12-30. Retrieved 2010-08-26.
38. ^'Japanese Comic Ranking, February 24-March 2'. Anime News Network. 2010-07-07. Retrieved 2010-08-26.

External links[edit]

• Manga official website(in Japanese)
• Anime official website(in Japanese)
• Video game official website(in Japanese)
• Sekirei (manga) at Anime News Network's encyclopedia

In the popular MMORPG world ‘Union’ there existed a legendary party named Subaru. This party, made up of a group of childhood friends and elementary schoolers, exceeded the limits of the game with their various senses. However, due to an incident which resulted in a death, ‘Union’ ended its service and the group of childhood friends went separate ways. Six years later, highschooler Haruto logged into the new ‘Reunion’ and reunited with a single girl. Asahi—one of old ‘Subaru’ party members, and his childhood friend who should have died six years ago. Is she a digital ghost, or…?

(Source: MAL News)